Psyche

Two happenings of the recent weeks have reinforced the belief that the mind is a wonderful instrument for either staving off negatives or performing extraordinary things beyond one's ability (Case in point being Leander Paes in Davis Cup matches ). The first one being Roger Federer's victory at French and Wimbledon ( Both the tournaments he was expected to win , but the scrutiny that he was subjected to would have killed anybody. ) Still remember Boris Becker after his 1987 defeat to Peter Doohan at Wimbledon saying " Nobody died . The sun will still rise tommorow " .

People actually feel relived at not being the centre of attention for once. It requires a man of extreme self belief to block off all that is happening around him. One look at The Centre court and it was filled with champions across eras be it Laver, Borg, Mcenroe and Sampras. Imagine this your are working in your office in what seems a pretty much routine job and there are thousands of eyes rivetted on you. I can bet my life that you shall fluff it. It's human nature to be conscious of the microscope.

The second incident is Paul Collingwood staving off the Aussies in a classic test match. Despite losing partners he instilled in himself and the new batsman that this could be done.Too often we crib that if people dont own up why should I ? The good are separated from the great in exactly the same manner in that the will is a bit more stronger.

We expect our heroes to be of a certain type, certain mental fortitude, but is in times of stress do they actually tell us that they have taken control of the situation and the rest can breather easy.